Sometimes I have no motivation to teach. It doesn’t make me a bad or incompetent teacher, it is just the proof that I’m human. So I ditch the guilt! Most of the time when I get to this point it is because I’m bored, bored of using the same material, or same lesson plans. And if I’m bored, chances are that my students are bored as well.
So what do I do when I need a little fun in my French class? I put the syllabus away for a day and I play games and/or activities with my kiddos that make me happy. I have some go-to games that I’m eager to share with you.
Play the monster game! for fun in your French class
I have a bit of a history with this game. I’m the youngest of 4 sisters and we used to play this fun and creative game for hours . My students often ask to play it and it gives me a big smile. There is no winner or looser, we’re just all trying to draw the silliest, ugliest monster following instructions from the pile of cards. Laughter guarantied! It is a great way to review body parts, colors and numbers. Find my own version of this game here!
More fun in your French class-Write fun tales with Story Cubes
Easy peasy, you just throw the dice and write a story using the illustrations on the faces of the dice. Students conjugate verbs, use vocabulary, and create sentences without even realizing it. Depending on your class level you can add different rules such as asking them to write their story in le passé composé, adding more dice and therefore more vocabulary words to use, or asking for a specific number of sentences.
You can find all of the Story Cubes on Amazon. They have a bunch of themes: Voyages, Actions, Classic, Heroes, Fantasia, Mystery etc..
Don’t show and don’t tell fun in your French class
This activity works particularly well with distance learning. I ask a student to go get something in their house and hide it from the rest of the class. We all ask questions, in French of course, and try to guess what the object is. It is easy, doesn’t require any prep, and it’s never boring! You learn a lot about your students this way and it brings up topics and vocabulary that you might never had encountered in a text book!
have fun in your French class by starting to have fun yourself
And this my friends is key! I love playing games (I’m a little competitive too haha) and I find that these silly but also full of learning moments are a great way to bond more with my students and build relationships. So let yourself have fun and enjoy!